We've noticed that Boris shows a good turn of speed, but in our back yard there's no competition to validate our impression.

Last week we went to a party arranged for various dogs and their people to get together. There was another lab there, and Boris and he spent time running around in crazy lab fashion. Boris impressed others there with his speed; but again this didn't seem definitive proof of superior running; this other lab that he outdistanced was older and bulkier.

Then yesterday we took the dog to an off-leash area in a public park for the first time. Initially he just ran like a goof with the other dogs, tumbling and yapping. Finally, at one point when all the dogs were running in generally the same direction, Boris just kicked in the afterburners and ran away from those other mutts like they were club-footed babies. A reverent hush quieted the other owners, harsh gasps were muffled under the firs and over the bark, sand, and crap, as the other dogs strained to catch up and Boris' ears and tongue flapped like a dunce cap as he ran. Our dog may be a freak, but he is fleet.